DANVERS — Students who plan to drive to Danvers High this school year may be in for a bit of sticker shock with the cost for a parking decal increasing from $5 to $20.
That's still a lot less than it costs to park near Fenway Park for a Red Sox game. It's also a lot less than some other North Shore schools charge for parking. But it's still an increase, and there's a reason for it.
The extra money Danvers High collects will pay for parking monitors to ensure students park in the appropriate places while the school undergoes an $80 million construction project, interim Principal Sue Ambrozavitch said. The administration is asking students to park only on campus, in designated lots, not along Cabot Road or other side streets adjacent to the school.
The fee will offset costs for "increased vigilance" in the parking lots and for new signs.
"We are just trying to be good neighbors," Ambrozavitch said.
At the August School Committee meeting, where the increase in student parking fees was approved, School Committee member Bill Bates said he was aware of other schools whose fees were much higher than the one in Danvers. He complimented Assistant Principal Mark Strout for his work in setting up a parking plan amid all the construction.
"We were afraid we wouldn't have student parking," Bates said.
In Danvers and elsewhere, this is the time of year when student drivers are racing around to obtain parking permits from their respective high schools. Danvers students can do so in the high school's lobby today.
While the Danvers High parking fee is up, it's a far cry from the fee in Beverly, where seniors get first dibs on parking spaces that cost $175 a year, according to the high school's blog. Beverly High also has parking constraints due to ongoing construction.
Masconomet Regional and Swampscott High both charge $100 for students to park. Swampscott's parking fee is in its second year, according to the school.
Masconomet's parking permits are for seniors "who are in good standing" and are available on a first-come, first served-basis, with a cap on the number of permits issued, according to a memo from the school's security office on the school's website.
However, students parking at Peabody Veterans Memorial High, Marblehead High, Salem High and Ipswich High do not have to shell out a dime.
"Salem High School does not charge a student parking fee," Principal David Angeramo said in an e-mail. There are no decals and parking is for students and faculty alike, he added.
"Currently, we do not have a parking fee," Peabody High Principal Ed Sapienza said. There was a fee for a couple of years, but it proved unpopular with parents and the School Committee.
In Peabody, students still have to get a parking decal, which helps the school identify any strange cars that show up in the lot. It also helps track down the driver of a car in cases where a student leaves his or her lights on, Sapienza said.
Staff writer Ethan Forman can be reached at 978-338-2673 or by e-mail at eforman@salemnews.com.
Student parking fees
Beverly$175
Masconomet$100
Swampscott$100
Danvers$20
Essex Aggie$0
Ipswich$0
Marblehead$0
Peabody$0
Salem$0
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